Want Votes in 2003? Win in New York

Alan Tieuli

03/06/2002

Fortunately the AP poll doesn't matter when it comes to selecting teams for the NCAA Tournament. Otherwise, Notre Dame -- tied in poll votes with Central Connecticut State -- would be in trouble. But with rankings come prestige. And if the Irish want to be among the elite in 2003 they would be best served to win a couple of games in New York this week. IrishEyes Managing Editor Alan Tieuli explains from Madison Square Garden.

NEW YORK (IE) – Why did Central Connecticut State garner the same number
of votes this week in the AP poll as Notre Dame?

It's simple. Eastern writers have a large contingency of media members in the
72-person poll and Notre Dame has perennially been awful at the largest gathering of these
writers – the Big East Conference Tournament. You want respect? Win a couple of games
at the Garden and play on the weekend.

"My theory," said Jim O'Connell, national college basketball
writer for the AP, "is that Notre Dame doesn't get the votes because it
doesn't track high in the Big East. The voters never want to place too many teams
from one conference in the poll and Notre Dame has never had that respect as an
upper-echelon Big East team."

That's why Notre Dame's quarterfinal round game with St. John's Thursday
night at 9:30 is so important. Its time to change the perception of this program.

It won't be easy. The Irish have the worst record (1-6) and lowest winning
percentage in Big East Tournament history. Five of the losses have been by 10 or more
points and in every game the Domers have had more turnovers than assists. Ugly.

"We use to be the laughingstock of the Big East, there's no hiding behind
it," said senior forward David Graves. "This program is too proud and too
rich in tradition to be that way."

The skepticism for the Irish program may be starting to lift. The New York Daily News
picked Notre Dame to win this tournament. The Post and The Times both had the Irish in the
final four here. ESPN's Mike Tirico fawned over Mike Brey at the Big
East Awards ceremony Tuesday.

But all the goodwill for the program could be lost if the Irish fall to the Red Storm.
It's time to make a stand in this tournament, and the players and staff know it.

"We're going to try and win the thing," said Brey. "We're in a
position to handle things better. We're more mature. I think I know what to expect a
little more the second time."

Brey's first Notre Dame team was an embarrassment at the Garden last March, losing
66-54 to Pittsburgh. The Irish were minus-14 on the boards, had 16 turnovers to seven
assists and shot 19-for-52 from the field. What's worse, they looked like they would
have rather been in South Bend.

"I don't think we were hungry last year," Graves understated. "We
lost focus of our total goal. This year, everybody is hungry. We're poised and ready
to have a strong showing in three days. We have the bench now to do it, and the guys are
stepping in and playing well."

This formula worked for Pittsburgh. The Panthers won three games in the Big East
Tournament last March. So when they started off fast in November and December this
year, they quickly found their way into the polls. "A team like Oregon,"
said O'Connell, "doesn't track high in the Pac 10 so it took them a long time this
year to get recognized. It's all perception."

The Irish will be looking for quick revenge against the Johnnies, who beat the Irish
84-81 last Wednesday. While Madison Square Garden rocked for home team on that night, the
World's Greatest Arena has been far from friendly for the city team during this
tournament. St. John's has lost in the first round nine of the last 16 years.

"We gave the game away last week," said senior forward Ryan Humphrey.
"If we could have made one or two more defensive stops, we would have had a
victory."

Humphrey also agrees that Notre Dame came into this tournament fat and happy last year.

"We felt people were going to lay down for us because we won (the West
Division)," Humphrey said. "This year we have to make people lay down."

-0-

THE NOTEBOOK: Notre Dame had a late morning workout at John Jay College before the
players scattered throughout the City of Heroes. Humphrey and point guard Chris Thomas spent
time with their parents. Brey and his wife Tish and children Kyle and Callie
took in "MammaMia" at the fabled Winter Garden Theatre on
Broadway…Syracuse's winter meltdown continued with its 78-64 loss to Villanova.
The 20-11 Orange have now lost nine of their last 13 and seven of the last nine to teams
with winning records. The two victories came versus Notre Dame. IrishEyes figures Syracuse
now can be the first team to win both the pre-season and post-season
NIT…..Surely many Notre Dame fans feel Georgetown will be better next year without Kevin
Braswell at the point. It's no coincidence that it was Drew Hall who made
the game-winning penetration and dish against Providence and the magical John Linehan….Braswell
still has at least one more game to avoid earning the distinction as the league's most
disappointing player. That honor right now among upperclassmen has to go to Seton
Hall's Darius Lane. The Pirates under Louis Orr are
doing little to inspire hoop madness in North Jersey....Notre Dame has allowed 40 or more
points in five of the last six halves it has played. That won't get it done in this
tournament. "One man makes a mistake, that's all it takes," says
Humphrey.....The general c concensus with the media is that St. John's needs to defeat
Notre Dame to get into the NCAA's.

(Alan Tieuli is the Managing Editor of IrishEyes and can be reached at
aatandsonspr@aol.com)